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Small Biz Survival
  • POV

    Part of the process

    June 16, 2009August 27, 2014

    “I love to sit in these chairs.”My friend and I were at church for a meeting. The two of us were meeting before the meeting. We were walking toward some chairs and couches in one of the large “milling around” spaces. The chairs my friend was talking about are nice chairs. They are nice for…

    Read More Part of the processContinue

  • customer service | POV

    the power of playdoh

    June 4, 2009August 27, 2014

    He smiled when I walked in. “You brought me Play-doh?”“As a matter of fact, I did,” I said as I stood by the counter and opened the small yellow plastic container. He just watched. He could have started laughing at me. After all, he was the counter guy at a tire store. They sell tires…

    Read More the power of playdohContinue

  • customer service

    Like he owned the place

    May 28, 2009August 27, 2014

    I seldom rent cars. Seldom means twice in my life. However, because a couple of us needed to take a trip for work, we rented a car. It was half the price of paying mileage. I picked up the car at the airport on Sunday afternoon. That location was further than others, but it was…

    Read More Like he owned the placeContinue

  • customer service | mistakes

    two small stories of what not to do

    May 14, 2009August 27, 2014

    Two examples of customer service opportunities. The other day I walked into a donut place for a cup of coffee. I was pretty focused on my next task as I ordered a small decaf. I got my coffee, paid my $1.39 plus tax. As I turned to walk out, I saw the sign. “Large coffee…

    Read More two small stories of what not to doContinue

  • social media

    the difference it makes

    May 4, 2009August 27, 2014

    People wonder about developing an online presence. People question the value of using twitter. People debate whether twitter should be used for marketing or PR or anything significant. One such conversation was happening at a conference on blogging one Saturday morning recently, with marketing professionals passionately making claims. During the conversation, I leaned over to…

    Read More the difference it makesContinue

  • customer service | ideas

    the handwriting on the wall

    April 10, 2009August 27, 2014

    Gino’s makes great pizza. They take a long time baking it. We’re not talking 20 minutes long time. We’re talking 45-50 minutes from the time the order is taken until you start to eat. That’s a long time, no matter how good the pizza is. So Gino’s, in Chicago, somehow came up with a great…

    Read More the handwriting on the wallContinue

  • customer service

    Cleaning up coffee

    March 26, 2009August 27, 2014

    Jon looked at the spilled coffee, jumped up, fetched paper towels and began cleaning up. Ten minutes before, all seven people in the circle had been talking about store appearance. One person was talking about employees who stand around talking. Another told of being required to carry a rag, so he could front, face, and…

    Read More Cleaning up coffeeContinue

  • marketing

    The 5 Ts of Word of Mouth Marketing

    March 2, 2009February 18, 2024

    I am a talker. Not in the “person who talks all the time” sense of that word. In fact, I spend a lot of time not talking. In a crowd, unless I’m in front presenting, I’m at the back listening. I am, however, a talker in the sense that Andy Sernovitz describes talkers. For Sernovitz,…

    Read More The 5 Ts of Word of Mouth MarketingContinue

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